Raccoons, opossums, mice, bats, and birds can all be adorable and fun to watch, but some people just don’t understand the potential dangers that these forms of wildlife can pose to their family and pets. An encounter with even a small and seemingly harmless wild animal that finds their way onto your property can result in serious consequences for you, your children and your luxury dogs and cats.

Wild mammals and birds can damage your property, upset trash receptacles and set up nests in your yard, in your shed or even in accessible areas of your home. Certain forms of wildlife carry fleas, lice and ticks and can bring the threat of potentially deadly diseases like rabies.

Simple Steps to Protect Your Family and Pets

Even if you live in an area where wildlife sightings are very common, it doesn’t necessarily mean that there needs to be an imminent danger to your kids, dogs, and cats. In fact, there are some very simple steps that you can take to minimize the potential risk of an unwanted wildlife encounter:

Keep Trash Bins Securely Covered

Squirrels, rats, raccoons, opossums and wild cats all love to rummage through the garbage that contains scraps of food. By keeping trash in tightly tied bags and in cans with secure lids, you eliminate a major source of attraction for wildlife.

Make sure your Fence is in Good Condition

Fixing holes or replacing missing planks in the fence around your property keeps rabbits, raccoons, and many other mammals off of your property. A secure boundary really minimizes the chances for a potentially dangerous encounter between a wild animal and your pets or children.

Don’t leave Pets Outside Unattended

Even with a solid fence, some animals will still find their way into your yard. If your dogs are out roaming for extended periods they have a greater chance of coming across a wild animal that has made its way onto your property. If the animal has a nest or a food source nearby they may become aggressive and look to protect instead of escape. This can result in serious injury to both your pet and the wild animal.

Keep Cats Indoors

Cats are natural hunters and are not necessarily deterred by your fence. If there is a bird or rabbit in a neighbor’s yard, they will likely give chase. A cat who exits the confines of your property is at a much greater risk of injury due to a wild animal attack, but to other dangers (like traffic, poison or traps left out by others for wild animals, etc.)

Ultrasonic Pest Protection

Ultrasonic pest repellents use high-frequency sound waves to drive away a variety of pests, rodents, and insects. For homeowners who are looking for a hands off and mess free method of keeping unwanted pests out of their home, this can be a safe and effective solution.

Ultrasonic repellents are safe for humans and family pets (you can’t hear the sounds, neither can your pets, there are no poisons and no danger of pets or kids suffering the injuries that can occur from snap traps). After the fast and easy initial setup, there is nothing to do but allow the device to work driving away unwanted pests.

In addition to the steps above, simply avoiding contact with wildlife is also a major factor in keeping pets and family members safe. Don’t leave food out for wild animals, don’t intentionally engage with them and never encourage your pets to interact with wildlife.

Even those with the best of intentions and those who have taken the proactive measures mentioned above can still find themselves in a position where a wild animal has entered their home or garage and is posing a potential threat. In these instances, it is important that the situation is handled properly to minimize the risk.

It’s never a good idea to attempt to poison a wild animal on your property. Poison baits have elements that attract wildlife (they look and smell like food), which may also attract your family pets.

Cornering a wild animal is also not advisable. Raccoons, opossums, and birds can all become very territorial, especially if they have a nest nearby. Cornering them can insight an attack, which can result in serious injury for any people or pets in the area.

If a wild animal has set up residence in your home, garage or yard or is posing a threat to your family it makes sense to enlist the help of a professional. A wildlife control expert can quickly analyze the wildlife threat on your property and take the best steps toward removal in a manner that ensures the safety of your family and your pets and with minimal risk to the wild animal.

Canine Influenza, otherwise called canine flu, was initially seen in the USA in 2004 in racing greyhounds in Florida. The CIV H3N8 strain has now spread to over 38 countries and generally happens in the canine population. Genetic analysis indicates that the virus is closely associated with equine flu, also as greyhounds and race horses frequently are around the very same racetracks, speculation is that canine flu evolved in the equine virus and jumped from horses to dogs.

In 2015, an epidemic of a new breed of dog flu appeared. This breed known as CIV H3N2 is of avian origin rather than linked to this earlier CIV H3N8 virus.

Dogs of any age may be affected, and since the viruses are comparatively new, there’s little to no natural immunity from the canine population. Virtually all dogs who are exposed to the virus become infected and almost 80% show clinical signs of disease. The virus is extremely contagious, but mercifully has a very low mortality rate. There’s no “season” for this, and it spreads year round. Dogs greatest in danger are those bundled together, the very young, the very old and also the immune-compromised. The disease doesn’t affect humans.

The virus spreads through respiratory secretions (e.g. Mucous and saliva) and infected objects and surfaces (e.g. Noodle surfaces, water, food bowls, collars and leashes). Folks also distribute it going between infected and uninfected dogs with no appropriate hygiene or precautions.

Indicators of canine flu follow along one of two paths, severe or mild, with the gentle kind being the most frequent. Symptoms are usually found within 2-3 days of disease. The gentle form contains: Soft, moist cough which lasted for 10-30 times, Dry cough, such as kennel cough, Loss of desire, Lethargy, Sneezing, Discharge from eyes, Runny nose, and Thick discharge from nose.

Treatment will be based on the symptoms that your dog is introduced. Antibiotics may be prescribed to combat any bacterial infections existing. Anti-inflammatories might be awarded for fever, swelling and pain. Fluid treatment is given to all those dogs that are very dehydrated. Other medicines may be prescribed based on the additional symptoms present. Hospitalization may be required in more severe cases. Fatalities have just been reported with the beginning of pneumonia, however, the speed is less than 10 percent of dogs that are affected.

Boosting the Dog Immune System

Boosting your pet’s immune system helps accelerate the recovery from dog flu, in addition to preventing further afield. It is the work of the immune system to secure your pet’s own body from cells infected by bacteria, a virus, fungus, or parasites. The immune system also filters out toxins and retains cells powerful enough to fight dog illness like the dog influenza. When the immune system is weak, micro-organisms comprising infections and toxins can pass via the immune cells that are immune.

The most effective methods to enhance the immune system include fundamental nutrition and nutritional supplements. A puppy who eats entire foods free of substances and additives and allergens like wheat, soy, and corn may have higher health than a puppy that has a bad diet. Your pet’s diet ought to be rich in organic ingredients which mimic what he’d consume in the wild and also the food needs to have a high moisture content.

1 approach to help your pet remain free of the flu would be to vaccinate him against it. Vaccines have now released vaccines against the two canine flu viruses. Flu vaccines aren’t a guarantee that your pet will not catch the illness, but when a vaccinated pet doesn’t go down with influenza, it’s typically not as severe as it is in puppies which are unvaccinated.

Could puppies catch flu from people?

Diseases that leap from animals to humans are known as zoonoses. However, there’s also the possibility of diseases like influenza, to maneuver out of people to animals. These are known as reverse zoonoses.

Reverse zoonoses is not very well known, and it is not very common.

We are aware that ferrets, and sometimes cats, can catch flu from individuals, but there’s less evidence of puppies doing this.

Can people catch flu from puppies?

In accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no evidence of transmission of canine flu from dogs to humans. There really have been no documented instances of an individual catching flu in their puppy.

There are obviously two places you can hold the photo session- indoors or outdoors. Whichever you choose you need to keep the lighting, time and the mood of your pet in mind. Take your pet’s preference into account when choosing the setting. You need your pet to be in a good mood.

The perfect day

Pythagoras says, “Animals share with us the privilege of having a soul,” and you would want your snapshots to reflect this soul. It’s all about the rightness and brightness of light. Choose a day which is not too bright neither too dark, you want the lighting to just right to make your photos appear au natural and not screaming ‘it took me ages to click this!’

It’s all about the timing

Your pet will not stay put and you should use this to your advantage. Coax him, bribe him and use a calm tone to get him to the right position you want. A happy pet equals happy pictures.

Camera settings

If you have got a cooperative pet who loves photography sessions then this will be a cake walk for you. However, not every cat and dog likes the camera flash; it scares them, makes them nervous. That’s why you need a day which isn’t too cloudy or too bright. Besides, the flash tends to give a washed out effect, so you would want to turn it off.

The subject and the number

You need not have a particular pose in mind; you can encourage your pet to move about while you go on clicking. Take a handsome amount of pictures, because your pet will not always heed to your request and peer into the camera for you. The more the merrier, you can always discard the ones which don’t look good to you.

The surprise factor

Use toys, whistles, gestures and treats to grab their attention, if outdoor photography has led them to chase a butterfly or mantis. This might make them bounce back towards you leaving you with an adorable shot. Distractions work best at giving you the perfect shot and viewing your pet in a different light, literally.

The Angle

Angle matters, when you are snapping his pictures. Taking it from a high angle is very common; why not crouch down to his level and try clicking? You will have some beautiful pictures of your four-legged darling. Bend yourself, lean, move slowly and engage your pet’s attention. You will be have a fun session as will your cat or dog.

Make sure to reward your pet afterwards for being cooperative, and being so photogenic. Happy clicking to you!